2023 Kia K5 — Should You Buy One?
Typical asking price: $18,000–$25,000. There are 2 high-severity known issues you need to know before handing over a check.
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Kestrel Take
Half of this car's 106 complaints are one thing: the fuel tank pressurising, swelling and shoving the back seat up, with a recall issued in late 2025 and owners still reporting failed inspections and long waits for tanks. The rest of the record is small — chrome rear-window trim that flies off on the highway (also recalled), a dozen loss-of-power complaints, the transmission fail-safe recall carried over from 2021. No fires reported on this year, which is a real difference from the 2021 and 2022. It is the cleanest K5 of the first three years, but 'cleanest' here means the same defect with fewer consequences so far, not a different car. Buy it if the four recalls show closed, the seller can produce the fuel-tank inspection paperwork, and the rear seat sits flat and level side to side. Walk from any example the dealer has had for weeks waiting on a tank.
What we checked
Reconciled against public records, 2026-09-25
NHTSA holds 106 owner complaints for the 2023 Kia K5, and 4 recall campaigns.
A big number here usually means a lot of these were sold, not that it is a bad vehicle — popular models collect more complaints for the same rate of trouble. So the total on its own says little. What is worth reading is the shape of it. 50% of them are about one thing — the fuel system. That much concentration is a genuine pattern rather than background noise, and it is the first thing to check on any example you look at.
4 recall campaigns cover this model year. Recalls are repaired free, for any owner, with no time limit on most safety campaigns — but only if someone books it in. Ask the seller to show it was done, or have any dealer check the VIN; it takes them a couple of minutes and costs nothing.
Counts come from the NHTSA complaint and recall database — free, public, and worth checking yourself.
Known Issues for the 2023 Kia K5
Ranked by wallet impact. These are documented, recurring problems — not freak accidents. How we decide that.
Recall 25V794 covers every 2021–2024 K5: a bad check valve lets air into the fuel tank, the tank balloons, and it can press against the exhaust and melt. On the 2023 the record is all about the aftermath — a loud bang from the back, a fuel smell, fuel economy dropping, a bulge in the vertical face of the rear seat where your calves rest, and cars that fail the dealer's tank inspection and then sit for 46 days waiting on Kia. One owner got a receipt saying the recall was complete and the car still had the symptom. Owners also mention an earlier Kia campaign they call SC288, a tank inspection with an ECM update, that kept bringing the check-engine light back. Lift the rear cushion, compare the two sides, and refuse any car where the tank inspection is pending.
Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed; $1,500–$3,000 for a tank if you end up paying
Source: NHTSA complaints filed under the fuel system (53); 4 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.
Recall 25V493 covers 2023–2025 K5s: the trim pieces at the C-pillars beside the rear window can loosen and detach at speed. Owners describe noticing a loose piece in the afternoon and watching it sail off on the interstate that evening, one nearly hitting a truck. Dealers inspect and replace the trim free. The rest of the 14 structure complaints are a sunroof glass cracking and a front splash guard that fell off in rain, which the dealer would not cover. Press each of the three chrome pieces around the rear glass; any give or lifted edge means the recall is still open.
Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed; $300–$900 for a sunroof glass
Source: NHTSA complaints filed under the body and structure (14); 4 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.
Twelve engine complaints, and they are not one fault. A GT1 lost all acceleration twice, at 16,000 and 26,000 miles, with the dash flickering first. A four-month-old car shut down in the middle of the road. Others describe violent shaking, sputtering under throttle and rough gear changes that a set of spark plugs did not cure, and a few are the check-engine light returning after the fuel-tank recall work. With the count this low we will not name a single cause; what we will say is that a K5 that stumbles or shakes on a hard pull needs a code read before money changes hands.
Repair cost (estimate): $150–$1,500 depending on the fault found
Source: NHTSA complaints filed under the engine (12).
Recall 22V760 carries over to the 2023 K5: if the transmission oil pump fails, the fail-safe mode that should let you limp to the shoulder may not engage and the car loses all drive. Dealers update the transmission software and replace the transmission where the pump has already failed, free of charge. Eleven powertrain complaints on this year describe hesitation from a stop and harsh or delayed shifts. Confirm the recall on the VIN, then check that the car takes up drive the moment you release the brake and shifts cleanly from cold.
Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed
Source: NHTSA complaints filed under the transmission and drivetrain (11); 4 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.
Recall 23V149 covers 2021–2023 K5s: the roof-rail curtain airbags may have been fitted incorrectly at the factory, so they may not deploy as designed in a side impact or rollover. The remedy is a dealer inspection and reinstallation, free. There is nothing to see from the outside; this is purely a VIN check. Six of this year's complaints report a crash, and the forward-collision cluster has two of them, so if you are relying on the safety systems, make sure this one has actually been done.
Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed
Source: 4 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.
Walk-Away Red Flags
- ✗Rear seat cushion higher on one side, or a bulge at the front face of the cushion
- ✗Fuel smell after a drive, or a fuel gauge that reads differently after each fill
- ✗Loose or lifted chrome trim beside the rear window
- ✗Dash that flickers, or a stumble on a full-throttle pull
- ✗Seller cannot produce the fuel-tank inspection paperwork for recall 25V794
- ✗Car that has been sitting at a dealer waiting on parts
Good Signs
- ✓All four recalls shown complete on the NHTSA VIN lookup
- ✓Dealer repair order for the fuel-tank inspection with the tank passed or replaced
- ✓New C-pillar trim fitted under recall 25V493
- ✓Rear seat cushion flat and level side to side with the floor under it smooth
- ✓Transmission software update from 22V760 on the service printout
- ✓Clean full-throttle pull from 30 to 70 mph with steady gauges
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Known issues on this page are based on documented owner reports, NHTSA complaints, class-action records, and manufacturer technical service bulletins. Individual vehicles vary. A pre-purchase inspection by a trusted mechanic is always worth doing.
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